Delta’s Platinum and Diamond elite status levels include “Choice Benefits” in addition to many automatic perks. Platinum elites can choose one Choice Benefit each year, and Diamond elites can choose three. This guide will help you choose…
Delta Choice Benefit Overview
| 2024 Choice Benefits | Platinum (Choose 1) | Diamond (Choose 3) |
|---|---|---|
| Upgrade Certificates | 4 Regional | 4 Global, or 8 Regional, or 2 Global + 4 Regional |
| Statement Credits for Delta Platinum & Reserve cardholders | $200 | $500 |
| Starbucks® Rewards Stars | 4,000 Stars | 4,000 Stars |
| Delta Sky Club Executive Membership | N/A | Requires 3 Choice Benefits |
| Medallion Qualification Dollars (MQD) Earn Boost | 500 MQDs | 1,000 MQDs |
| Gift Medallion Status | 2 Silver Medallion | 2 Gold Medallion |
| Bonus Miles | 20,000 | 25,000 |
| Delta Vacations® Experience (Flight + Hotel) | $400 | $500 |
| Sustainable Aviation Fuel Contribution | $250 | $250 |
| Delta Travel Voucher | $250 | $250 |
| 2025 Choice Benefits | Platinum (Choose 1) | Diamond (Choose 3) |
|---|---|---|
| Upgrade Certificates | 4 Regional | 4 Global, or 8 Regional, or 2 Global + 4 Regional |
| Statement Credits for Delta Platinum & Reserve cardholders | $400 | $700 |
| Starbucks® Rewards Stars | 6,000 Stars | 6,000 Stars |
| Delta Sky Club Individual Membership | N/A | Requires 2 Choice Benefits |
| Delta Sky Club Executive Membership | N/A | Requires 3 Choice Benefits |
| MQD Accelerator | 1,000 MQDs | 2,000 MQDs |
| Gift Medallion Status | 2 Silver Medallion | 2 Gold Medallion |
| Bonus Miles | 30,000 | 35,000 |
| Delta Vacations® Experience (Flight + Hotel) | $400 | $500 |
| Sustainable Aviation Fuel Contribution | $250 | $250 |
| Delta Travel Voucher | $300 | $350 |
| Wheels Up Flight Credit | $1,500 | $2,000 |
Choice Benefit Details
Upgrade Certificates
- Platinum: 4 Regional
- Diamond: 4 Global OR 8 Regional OR 2 Global AND 4 Regional
- Expiration: Certificates must be booked and flown by the end of the Medallion Year. For example, upgrade certs from 2025 Choice Benefits are valid through the end of January 2026. They cannot be applied to a flight departing February 1 2026, or later.
- Greg’s take: Now that upgrades confirm into Premium Select from main cabin tickets (instead of confirming into Delta One), they’re not as valuable as they used to be, but I still find them to be among the most valuable choices. You can apply upgrade certs online in some situations, and they can be applied to award tickets, companion tickets, and to Delta Vacation packages. Additionally, it is possible to score an upgrade to Delta One in multiple ways via Global Upgrade Certificates: 1) Purchase a Premium Select ticket; 2) Purchase an economy ticket on a flight that does not offer Premium Select; or 3) Purchase an economy ticket, use the cert to upgrade to Premium Select, and then you’ll be put on the waiting list for a free upgrade to Delta One within 24 hours of the flight.
- Related posts:
Statement Credits
Anyone with a Delta Platinum consumer or business card, or a Delta Reserve consumer or business card can select a statement credit as a Choice Benefit.
- Expiration: Select before your elite year ends (e.g. if you qualify in 2024 for the 2025 elite year, then you must select benefits before the end of January 2026).
- Greg’s take: With the 2025 Choice Benefits, the statement credits are worth more than the credit card annual fee’s. In my opinion, this is a great use of a Choice Benefit.
Starbucks® Rewards Stars
- Expiration: Unused Stars will expire 6 months after the end of the calendar month in which they were deposited into your Starbucks® Rewards account.
- Greg’s take: Please don’t choose this. Considering theStarbucks Stars devaluation and the fact that you only have 6 months to use the Stars, this seems to me to be one of the worst Choice Benefits.
Delta Sky Club Individual Membership
- Platinum: N/A
- Diamond: One Individual Membership requires 2 Diamond Choice Benefit selections
- Expiration: Membership is valid for the duration of your membership year. For example, if you earn Diamond status in 2024 for the 2025 year, your membership will be valid through the end of February 2026.
- Greg’s take: Don’t do it! A Delta Reserve credit card gives you the same SkyClub access as this individual membership. So, a much better play is to get a Delta Reserve card with its $650 annual fee and use only one Choice Benefit to get $700 back.
Delta Sky Club Executive Membership
- Platinum: N/A
- Diamond: One Executive Membership requires all 3 Diamond Choice Benefit selections
- Expiration: Membership is valid for the duration of your membership year. For example, if you earn Diamond status in 2024 for the 2025 year, your membership will be valid through the end of February 2026.
- Greg’s take: I think that most people would be better off taking other Choice Benefits. Use a Delta Reserve card to access the club and use the card’s two guest vouchers for occasional club guests or pay for guests. You would have to bring guests along a lot to make this choice worthwhile.
Medallion Qualification Dollars (MQD) Earn Boost
- Expiration: Select before you elite year ends. MQDs apply to the following elite year.
- Greg’s take: Whether or not this is valuable depends entirely on whether or not the selection will get you to the next level of elite status before the elite qualifying year ends. If not, this selection is worthless.
Give Medallion Status
- Platinum: Give Silver Medallion status to two people
- Diamond: Give Gold Medallion status to two people
- Expiration: Gifted status expires at the end of your elite year. For example, if you earn Platinum status in 2024 for the 2025 elite year, gifted Silver status will last until the end of January 2026.
- Greg’s take: If you have friends or family that would benefit, this could be a great choice! Silver status alone gives members free upgrades, priority seat selection, a free checked bag, etc.
- Related post: What is Delta elite status worth?
Bonus Miles
- Expiration: None
- Greg’s take: SkyMiles are worth a minimum of 1 cent each for Delta cardholders, and can be worth quite a bit more. So 30,000 SkyMiles are worth at least $300.
Delta Vacations® Experience (Flight + Hotel)
- Expiration: Valid for one year after issuance
- Greg’s take: I find Delta Vacations a bit of a pain to work with, but now that Delta Vacations flights can be upgraded with upgrade certificates, they’re not as bad as they used to be. If you know that you will book a Delta Vacation within the time frame, this Choice Benefit offers solid value.
Sustainable Aviation Fuel Contribution
- Expiration: None
- Greg’s take: Personally I’d prefer to make tax deductible donations towards sustainable practices, but if this particular use of $250 is meaningful to you, go for it.
Delta Travel Voucher
- Expiration: Valid for 12 months from the date of issuance
- Greg’s take: This can be nearly as good as cash for those who book paid Delta flights often.
Delta Choice Benefit FAQ
Where to find the Choice Benefits selection page
The normal way to find the Choice Benefits page is to log into your Delta account on Delta.com and click around until you find it (Click SkyMiles… My SkyMiles… and look for Choice Benefits). Alternatively, you can click here to jump directly to the Choice Benefits page.
Which Platinum Choice Benefits are worthwhile?
Each year, once you qualify for Platinum Medallion status, you’ll have the option to select a single Choice Benefit. Here are the 2025 Platinum Choice Benefits that I think are worth considering:
- Regional upgrade certificates. These can be used to upgrade to first class. While these rarely clear at the time of booking, they at least put you to the front of the line for upgrades at the gate. This is great to use for flights where upgrades are most important to you. For example, I use these for flights of about 3 hours or longer. This is a choice benefit for Platinum and Diamond status. Upgrade certificates can be applied to both paid and award tickets.
- $400 Statement Credits for Delta Platinum & Reserve cardholders. Starting with 2025 Choice Benefits, this choice is now worth $400 in cash back. That’s more than enough to fully offset a Delta Platinum card’s annual fee.
- Gift Silver Medallion status. This became much more valuable starting with 2024 choices since we can now gift status to two people instead of just one. See also: What is Delta elite status worth?
- 30,000 Bonus miles. 30,000 miles are worth anywhere from $300 to $450, or more, towards flights. And, unlike most other Choice Benefits, miles never expire.
- $400 Delta Vacations voucher. If you don’t mind the limitations inherent in booking travel packages, you can get $400 value with a Platinum choice. That’s excellent (as long as you use it before it expires!).
Which Diamond Choice Benefits are worthwhile?
Each year, once you qualify for Diamond Medallion status, you’ll have the option to select three Choice Benefits. Here are the 2025 Diamond Choice Benefits that I think are worth considering:
- Global upgrade certificates. Use these on any long distance or international flight to upgrade from coach to premium economy, or directly to business class when premium economy isn’t available. Delta will no longer confirm an upgrade in advance from cheap economy to Delta One business class. Instead, Delta will immediately upgrade you to Premium Economy and then put you on the upgrade list to business class 24 hours before your flight. Upgrade certificates can be applied to both paid and award tickets.
- $700 Statement Credit for Delta Platinum & Reserve cardholders. This Diamond Choice Benefit is an easy win for anyone with a Delta Platinum or Delta Reserve card. Since most Choice Benefits expire either at the end of the elite year or one year from issue, it’s great to have a new benefit that doesn’t have that drawback (the Bonus Miles choice is the other one where the value of the choice doesn’t expire).
- Gift Gold Medallion status. This became much more valuable starting with 2024 choices since we can now gift status to two people instead of just one. See also: What is Delta elite status worth?
- 35,000 Bonus miles. 35,000 miles are worth anywhere from $350 to $525, or more, towards flights. And, unlike most other Choice Benefits, miles never expire.
- $500 Delta Vacations voucher. If you don’t mind the limitations inherent in booking travel packages, you can get $500 value with a Diamond choice. That’s very good (as long as you use it before it expires!).
When do Delta Choice Benefits expire, and when should I pick them?
All Choice Benefits must be selected by the time your earned status expires. That translates to the end of January, two calendar years after you earned status. For example, if you earned status in 2024 for the 2025 calendar year, then your status is good until January 31, 2026. You must select all of your Choice Benefits by that date or you’ll lose them. It’s important to understand though that some of the options are useless if you wait until the last moment to pick them. Upgrade Certificates, gifted elite status, and SkyClub memberships expire when your earned elite status expires (Jan 31 on the second year after status was earned).
Benefits to choose as soon as possible
The following benefits are only valid until your elite year is complete (i.e. through January 2026 for those who earned status in 2024):
- Upgrade Certificates
- Gift Silver or Gold status
- Delta Sky Club Individual or Executive Membership
Benefits to choose when you’re ready to use them
- Delta Vacations® Experience (Flight + Hotel): Valid for 12 months from the date of issuance.
- Delta Travel Voucher: Valid for 12 months from the date of issuance.
- Starbucks® Rewards Stars: Unused Stars will expire 6 months after the end of the calendar month in which they were deposited into your Starbucks® Rewards account.
- Wheels Up Flight Credit: Valid for 12 months from the date of issuance.
Benefits that can be chosen any time
These options have no time constraints regarding when they must be used:
- Statement Credits
- Bonus Miles
- Sustainable Aviation Fuel Contribution
Can I change my Choice Benefit selection?
No. Once you pick a Choice Benefit, you cannot change it.
Do Centurion Cardholders get Choice Benefits?
The invite-only Amex Centurion Card offers automatic Delta Platinum Medallion status to the cardholder. In order to get a Platinum Choice Benefit, cardholders must fly a minimum of eight Medallion Qualification Segments (MQSs) after Status is awarded to be eligible for Choice Benefits.
If I earn Diamond Medallion status, can I select both Platinum and Diamond Choice Benefits?
Yes. Along the way to earning Diamond status, you’ll necessarily first earn Platinum status and that will qualify you for Platinum Choice Benefits.
Do I get Choice Benefits if my status is from the Million Miler program?
Yes, if you are a 2 Million Miler (Platinum status) or 3+ Million Miler (Diamond status), you will get to pick Choice Benefits beginning in February of each elite year.
Do I get Choice Benefits if I extended my 2024 status with 100K rolled-over MQMs?
In 2024 there was a one-time option to convert each 100,000 rolled over MQMs into an additional year of your current status. If you extended Platinum elite status then you’ll be able to pick Platinum Choice Benefits beginning in February of each elite year. If you extended Diamond elite status then you’ll be able to pick Diamond Choice Benefits beginning in February of each elite year, but you will not have Platinum Choice Benefits unless you earn enough MQDs for Platinum status each year.
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A big sweet spot for diamonds is using the global upgrades on KLM. Because they don’t have premium economy on all of their planes it goes straight from economy to business if there is Z space available. I just used mine for LAX-AMS-NBO round trip. I paid $910 per ticket and got round trip business class (on 4 segments!) for myself and partner. It’s how I use them every year. (There is another big benefit to doing this, but we don’t like to talk about it, so dig around to learn more). I’m just waiting for the sad day that their entire fleet has Y+ and they switch it to follow AF and the rest of their partners in only going up one class of service with the certs.
Yep, that’s an awesome use for sure. I just wish that KLM flew out of DTW!
Greg, in the original re-do from Hell, Delta hotel portal bookings counted towards MQDs. Two months ago, in a temporary promotion, they counted. Thoughts on them coming back? Thanks.
No idea
For ‘normal’ DM/PM status until now, the PM 4 RUC, DM 4 GUC was clearly a winner; however, might be worth some thoughts on the DMs who got the complimentary extension starting next year based on Rollover MQMs. Since Delta has said that only DM choice benefits would be available since it’s a ‘complimentary’ (not ‘earned) status, would 4 GUCs still be better than 8 RUCs??? 4 GUCs does guarantee 4 confirmable (last-seat) regional upgrades on most US, Caribbean, etc. If P1 alone is involved, then 4 RUCs + 2 GUCs might be a decent combo…
With 2025 year choice benefits posting, now would be a good time for an update.
Several material changes in these benefits, e.g. $400 Platinum /$700 Diamond statement credits vs. $200/$500 for 2024.
Having just finished the challenge for Platinum, I’m trying to decide between $400, 2 silver status gifts through Jan 2026, and RUCs that seem hard to redeem.
So, I hit Diamond status last year and used my choice benefits for Delta Sky Club access. I just hit Diamond today, for 2024 status. I went on to choose my Choice Benefits but I don’t have an option for the Delta Sky Club. Will that option appear once my current membership expires / runs out?
No, they won’t reintroduce the Individual Sky Club membership option until next year for those qualifying for 2025 status (and it will then require 2 choices). For this year, I don’t think there’s any advantage of having that membership over having an Amex Platinum or Delta Reserve card. Limits to Sky Club entry via card membership doesn’t start until Feb 2025.
If I achieved Platinum and will hit Diamond in a few weeks. Do I get the one Platinum pick and then the 3 Diamond when I cross that threshold?
Yes
If you buy an executive membership can you acess the club anytime not flying delta flying different airlines(not partners)?
No, only if you are flying Delta or a SkyTeam airline.
Delta complains about the club overcrowding, but gets rid of the individual membership. Executive membership can bring in a spouse and unlimited number of people under 21. Diamond members like myself are road warriors, and fly alone 99%+ of the time. Delta’s team really screwed over their top fliers with this, especially with the GUC downgrades and upping DM MQD requirement to $20k. I will have no issue making this, but the pencil pushers need to stop taking their top fliers for granted.
Do you think Delta will restore the value of GUCs going from econ to business (rather than just one cabin upgrades) once the glut of covid rollover members are off the books next year?
My guess is no, but it is something they can do to really elevate the Diamond experience again as it was a massive devaluation.
My guess is also no
Can you triple-dip on the $500 statement credits as a Diamond?
Maybe, but I think you would need three different eligible cards
Well, Delta and/or Amex would have to clarify before I’m willing to put the spend in for another round of Diamond. I’ll be just fine with Platinum and no more worrying about my GUCs never clearing. Easier this way
What would you say is the (reasonable) maximum value a person could obtain from these benefits if one were a Diamond or a Platinum? Thanks in advance.
Proof positive that the DL Loyalty team are hired as finance/sales people who negotiate benefits with internal product managers rather than marketers inciting consumer behavior.
You got that right. They care more about the credit card users than actual flyers.
If you are diamone, can you select the same item twice? Like 2 sets of 4 RUC & 2 GUC? thank you!
Not for the upgrade certs. You can only choose that benefit once. So only 4 GUC, 2 and 4 or 8 RUC. But you can also choose 4RUC for your platinum benefit
Can I select 4 RUC with platinum status and then select 4 GUC when I reach diamond with two other selections?
Yes